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Jobs and the Economy

There’s no question that our region was hit hard by the recession and the housing crisis. Now, as the national economy continues to improve, we have to make sure the Inland Empire does not get left behind. This is why creating jobs and growing our local economy are my biggest priorities in Congress.

Job Creation Listening Tour

At the start of my term in Congress, I launched a Job Creation Listening Tour to learn straight from the community what we needed to do put the Inland Empire back to work. I met with over 200 local economic leaders, education professionals, employees, and owners of businesses large and small. The findings, recommendations, and ideas that came out of the tour were published in report titled “A Roadmap to Economic Resilience in the Inland Empire” which you can find here.

Jobs Plan - One Year Later

On May 1, 2016 I released a one-year update to “A Roadmap to Economic Resilience in the Inland Empire” where I detailed the progress we've made on the recommendations outlined in the original report. From getting parts of my infrastructure funding bill signed into law to working with federal officials to make sure the local transfer of Ontario Airport goes smoothly, we accomplished a lot over the past year. You can read the full update here.

Regional Infrastructure Accelerator Act

Investing in our region’s infrastructure was the top recommendation in my Jobs Report. Not only is my district home to Ontario International Airport, but the Inland Empire also serves as an inland port through which goods that arrive at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are processed in or moved through before being transported all over the country. Our economy relies on safe, dependable roads and highways and on investment on rail and more efficient transit. However, experts estimate we need to invest $3.6 trillion over the next five years alone to adequately fund the country’s infrastructure needs. I introduced the Regional Infrastructure Accelerator Actto help pay for sorely needed improvements to our nation's roads, bridges, and water infrastructure. It will connect finance and infrastructure professionals with local and state governments to provide them with the technical expertise and pre-development capital needed to attract private investment.

JOBS Act

If we want to keep high tech manufacturing jobs in the US, we need to make sure we’re training jobseekers in the skills employers demand. The Job Opportunities between Our Shores (JOBS) Actwill connect educational institutions with manufacturers to give workers the training and skills they need to find jobs in growing industries. Right here in the Inland Empire, we’ve seen the success of the partnership between California Steel Industries and Chaffey College. This is a model we should grow and build upon as manufacturing jobs in the Inland Empire and across the country are bouncing back. Now is the time to keep the momentum moving forward by making sure American workers are able to stay ahead of the curve. If the recession has taught us anything it is that in order to build a resilient economy that can withstand future economic challenges, we need a dynamic, educated workforce and a diverse local economy. Comprehensive, demand-driven training programs like those proposed in the JOBS Act will help us do just that.

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WASHINGTON, DC — Today, U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres (D-CA) announced that Joe Rodgers, a Federal Aviation Administration Engineer Technician at Ontario International Airport who was one of the 800,000 federal workers furloughed during the 35-day long government shutdown, has been invited as her guest to the State of the Union address.

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres (D-CA) released the following statement after being appointed to serve on the House Appropriations Subcommittees on Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD); State Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPs); and Financial Services and General Government:

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres (D-CA) released the following statement after being appointed by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and confirmed by her colleagues of the Democratic Caucus to serve on the House Appropriations Committee, which is responsible for appropriating all federal spending, domestic and abroad:

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres (D-CA) released the following statement in response to the announcement by General Motors that it was closing five factories in North America and laying off nearly 15,000 workers:

WASHINGTON, DC – Rep. Norma J. Torres (D-Pomona), member of the powerful Rules Committee, announced passage of a legislative proposal she introduced to assist local airports, like Ontario International Airport, remove unused military facilities. Ontario International Airport shared space with the Ontario Air National Guard Station, which remained in operation for decades to provide training and support for the Korean, Vietnam, and other wars and conflicts. In 1997, the facility closed and the site sat unchanged for twenty years.

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Reps. Norma J. Torres (D-CA) and Tom Cole (R-OK) announced that the House Committee on Natural Resources passed their bipartisan Jobs for Tribes Act, paving the way for a vote on the House floor. The bill would strengthen Indian Country’s ability to become more self-sufficient by providing urgently needed business and economic development assistance.

WASHINGTON, DC – In several letters to the House Committee on Appropriations, Rep. Norma J. Torres (D-CA) called for robust funding for regional transportation planning and transit oriented development. Last year, the House of Representatives unanimously approved two amendments introduced by Torres to increase funding for infrastructure and transit programs. The first amendment provided $12 million for the Regional Infrastructure Accelerator Demonstration (RIA) Program, which Torres passed into law as part of the 2015 FAST Act.

A couple of weeks ago, U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres traveled to several communities in and around the Inland Empire to ensure the needs of local residents are reflected in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) budget. As Chair of the CHC Budget Task Force, Torres has been instrumental in crafting a budget that offers an alternative to the harmful cuts in the Trump Administration’s Fiscal Year 2019 budget.